German Cooperation gives possibility for a Double Degree

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Two students being the first from VIA’s Value Chain Management programme are at present doing a double-degree programme at Hochschule Offenburg in Gengenbach, Germany.

by communication specialist Søren Munch Terkelsen, SOMT@via.dk

Asbjørn Rohold and Kinga Kocsis from the Value Chain Management programme in Horsens and Aarhus respectively have started a 3 semesters programme in October. The result being achieving a bachelor diploma from both universities.

Students from the two universities have previously worked together in projects. There have been Danish students in Germany doing an exchange programme and VIA has also had German exchange students in Horsens, Denmark.
The experience from this cooperation has led to VIA University College and Hochschule Offenburg expanding the cooperation (now called Midplus), where Fontys University of Applied Science and HZ University of Applied Sciences both from Holland participate. Plans are that HAMK, Finland will join.

A good possibility

Mike Beyer-Pedersen, International Coordinator for the VCM programme, has been along in establishing this cooperation between Germany and Holland. He is looking forward to the possibilities that the cooperation will give our students.

”We have really good experiences with students doing projects together with German students from Offenburg. But at the same time, it has been a challenge to get funding as to make ends meet, e.g. when we must send students to Germany in connection with these projects, Mike Beyer-Pedersen says and continues:

“With the Midplus cooperation we have created the framework, as to our students having the possibility to gain international experience as well as getting a double degree. It will also be a good challenge for our lecturers, when German students come to VIA and have to finish their double degree with us. Generally I am very excited, on how this cooperation will develop, but at the same time confident as we have had a great start."

Two educations at the same time

For Asbjørn Rohold it has been an exciting possibility to get a double degree in Germany. It has also been a goal for Asbjørn to educate himself in another country than Denmark.

”With a double degree, I will be getting two educations at the same time. It gives me many possibilities. Also Germany is the country that Denmark has its greatest export to, so jobwise it is good to speak German and have a knowledge of the German culture”, Asbjørn explains and continues:
“It is an exciting possibility to come to another country and do my education, and it has always been my goal to both educate myself and work in another country. When the possibility came, I joined in, even though I knew that it is a pilot project for both Kinga and me, as we are the first from our programme to do this.

I would like to contribute and ask

Asbjørn Rohold studied four semesters at the Value Chain Management programme in Aarhus before leaving for Germany, where he will study three more semesters. Even though Germany and Denmark are neighbouring countries there is a great difference in how the teaching is done:

“I am used to having a lot of team work and that there is a lot of dialogue in connection with the lecturing. This is not quite the case in Germany. Here many students do not speak up, but I often ask questions, and would like to contribute with my views as well as I like to hear the opinion of the other students”, Asbjørn points out.

“If you want to study in another country one should do it despite the amount of paper work involved before leaving. I have experienced being received very well and it seems that Offenburg is very conscience about being forthcoming.”

When Asbjørn Rohold has done his double degree, he dreams of working with a large export company in Denmark, where he also will have the possibility to work abroad in periods.